The latest news regarding the U-19 Cricket World Cup took me by surprise. When initially seeing the banner headline of the South African captain being stripped of the captaincy, I must admit I ddn't think much of it. I know I was being ignorant but knowing the details now makes me sick. A person speaking his/her mind and dedicating a particular action/performance towards a cause and being punished for it is an insult in my eyes. To make it worse, at least to me, was that the captain is Jewish. If I may quote a South Park line: "What is this? Nazi Germany?" (Season 25, episode 1: 'Pajama Day').
People should feel free to speak their mind. If we get punished for saying something, then we should all keep our mouths iron shut and only talk about relevant issues that are related to our field/s. We should butt out of other unrelated matters. Unfortunately, that cannot be possible. Flows in conversation can transcend into anything else.
When people comment on controversial matters, it will never be kept quiet - it will always come to light of what a person says. When this happens, people will demand some form of reaction. This reaction is leaned towards the government to act. Politicians are in no position to be making sporting decisions. They have no business dealing with issues that they have no knowledge about. In this instance, the captain was stripped of the captaincy. I find this to be totally repulsive.
Freedom of speech is vital for the survival of mankind. It is one of the liberties that we have. If this continues to happen, we might as well keep our mouths shut and star in a silent movie called Our Lives. When a government makes a decision, it is always going to divide people - those who back the decision and those that are against it. The result will be a great friction in society. Anything can happen thereafter. It's unpredictable. The rapture might as well happen if this continues.
Unfortunately, racism is as big as controversial comments. It primarilly occurs in football. It is mainly aimed towards black players. They are referred to as 'Monkeys.' To me, this is disgusting. Just because they aren't playing well doesn't mean you have the right to 'attack' them. People need to realise that these terms and possible actions can harm the players psychologically. Their minds might be affected and damage their playing abilities. This is especially the case in young players. They won't know how to react or process the racist comment.
It can happen in cricket as well. A well known (and recently) discovered case was Azeem Rafiq vs. Yorkshire. Rafiq complained that he was on the receiving end of racial abuse and bullying during his two tenures at the club (2008 - 2014 and 2016-2018). This case proves that it's not just spectators and fans who are the only ones who do the dispectable acts. What's more depressing is that it took two years after the official complaint was made (2018) that an inquiry was only launched in 2020. This shows me a lack of respect towards players. People are (quite evidently) only worried about themselves and only act when it reaches public knowledge. When that happens, the people in charge are forced to act.
All that has been said is a clearly a sign that politics and racism are one of the constants. No matter what happens, the government will always interfere with sports. They will never help whatever is in the headlines. Quite the contrary, it will only hurt. Racism will always exist, no matter what actions are taken. Suspensions and bans will do nothing to solve the issues.
It seems that political actions and racism are invincible in sport. It will be here forever. I suppose the only solution that can exist is giving the respective individuals a taste of their own medicine. Should that happen, perhaps that will show the error of their ways.